Recommendation for Cleaning Gold GS Rims

[Jim_B]

I’ve got a ‘22 GS with the gold rims. Any suggestions on cleaning solution that won’t mess up finish? I’m hoping for something I can spray on, leave for a few minutes, then brush and rinse. 

 

Thanks

[TSConver]

Simple green works, just make sure whatever you use is not acidic.

[MikeB60]

They are damn hard to clean.  I'll have to try simple green.

[Steveyacht]

On 6/17/2023 at 12:16 PM, TSConver said:

Simple green works, just make sure whatever you use is not acidic.

I second Simple Green.  Cheap, easy to find, not harsh.  S100 should work also, but more costly.  Nothing ever replaces good old elbow grease.

[TEWKS]

I’ve used Greased Lightning  over the years with great results. Not on gold rims but I think the results would be the same.

[MikeB60]

3 hours ago, Steveyacht said:

I second Simple Green.  Cheap, easy to find, not harsh.  S100 should work also, but more costly.  Nothing ever replaces good old elbow grease.

S100 doesn't do much on the gold wheels. Elbow grease dosent do much either.  Simple Green is good stuff but not friendly to aluminum but I'm gonna try it on the GS wheels next time I wash it.  They do make a aluminum friendly version of simple green for aircraft. 

[Chris K]

Find yourself a good brush for wire wheels. I have not found any cleaner by itself that will clean these wheels off. 

[BrianT]

In the past I've sworn by Simple Green when I cleaned rims on the work bike and it worked well.  Haven't tried it on gold rims.  If it isn't friendly to aluminum maybe diluting it will help or as mike says try to find the aluminum friendly version.

[BrianT]

Here's what the FAQ from Simple Green says about using the regular formula on aluminum. 

 

"When used with caution and according to the instructions, Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner has been safely and successfully used to clean aluminum. Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner, Crystal Simple Green Industrial Cleaner & Degreaser, and Simple Green Pressure Washer Concentrates have been used on aircraft, automotive, industrial and consumer aluminum items for over 20 years. However, caution and common sense must be used: aluminum is a soft metal that easily corrodes with unprotected exposure to water. The aqueous-base and alkalinity of Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner can accelerate the corrosion process.

Therefore, contact times for unprotected or unpainted aluminum surfaces should be kept as brief as the job will allow - never for more than 10 minutes. Large cleaning jobs should be conducted in smaller-area stages to achieve lower contact time. Rinsing after cleaning should always be extremely thorough - paying special attention to flush out cracks and crevices to remove all Simple Green product residues. Unfinished, uncoated or unpainted aluminum cleaned with Simple Green products should receive some sort of protectant after cleaning to prevent oxidation."

[Jim_B]

On 6/21/2023 at 7:26 PM, BrianT said:

Here's what the FAQ from Simple Green says about using the regular formula on aluminum. 

 

"When used with caution and according to the instructions, Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner has been safely and successfully used to clean aluminum. Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner, Crystal Simple Green Industrial Cleaner & Degreaser, and Simple Green Pressure Washer Concentrates have been used on aircraft, automotive, industrial and consumer aluminum items for over 20 years. However, caution and common sense must be used: aluminum is a soft metal that easily corrodes with unprotected exposure to water. The aqueous-base and alkalinity of Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner can accelerate the corrosion process.

Therefore, contact times for unprotected or unpainted aluminum surfaces should be kept as brief as the job will allow - never for more than 10 minutes. Large cleaning jobs should be conducted in smaller-area stages to achieve lower contact time. Rinsing after cleaning should always be extremely thorough - paying special attention to flush out cracks and crevices to remove all Simple Green product residues. Unfinished, uncoated or unpainted aluminum cleaned with Simple Green products should receive some sort of protectant after cleaning to prevent oxidation."

[Jim_B]

I've got a good wheel brush. I'm heading out to get some simple green. Thanks for the research Brian!

[Skywagon]

Simple Green makes a Simple Green Aluminum....I don't know if it would be more or less harmful.  I use to use it to clean the belly of my airplane when it would get covered in oil and exhaust.

[Jim_B]

Used the Simple Green:

 

Overall, pretty darn good, but not perfect. But that was 12,000 miles of baked in build up.

 

First round, scrubbed it for 2 minutes, per the bottle. Unimpressed.

Second Round, scrubbed for 5 minutes, about 85% better. Took care of the grime layer, gold color is more uniform.

Third round, scrubbed 5 minutes for a few baked in oil or tar spots... a little improvement.

 

Elbow grease was still required. Hopefully with regular use it will go a lot faster.

A moderately stiff brush really helps. I had a soft and medium, and destroyed the soft one.

 

Next time I will spray it and leave it for a few minutes, then start with the brush.

 

 

[Rougarou]

10 minutes ago, Jim_B said:

 But that was 12,000 miles of baked in build up.

 

 

I'm pushing 32000 on the GSA.  It's never been washed, as in, actually, never.

 

The RT was washed in 2019,......as a potential trade in for the GSA, hasn't been washed since then.